In the spring of 1992, the city of Scranton paid tribute to a kindly old musician who had relocated from Manhattan in the late 1950s. Sadly, it turned out to be a requiem. A few months later, Sammy Timberg was dead at the age of 89, and the accomplishments of a life deeply intertwined in the history of American popular entertainment seemed destined to be forgotten – until his daughter decided to do something about that.

“When my dad died I knew almost nothing about his work. None of us did, because he never really talked about it,” Pat Timberg said. “What I discovered was an amazing life and a lasting legacy. I’d like people to know what a wonderful composer he was, and that’s what I’ve been working on ever since.”

As a musical director for the New York City-based Fleischer Studios in the 1930s and early ‘40s, Sammy…